There's never been a better time to explore a logistics career path. Of all the supply chain management careers available, job positions in logistics play an important role. These professionals handle supply planning, movement and storage of goods, analysis — and they’re in high demand. According to a Logistics and Supply Chain Labor Shortage survey there is a labor shortage in the industry. Positions for logistics workers — such as planners and analysts — are the most difficult to fill, followed by logistics managers. So keep reading to learn more about your career route options.
What is a logistics professional?
A logistics professional manages the process of moving goods and materials from point A to point B. They are responsible for planning the best routes, transportation, storage, and handle things like packing and delivery schedules. Additionally, they are needed to solve any problems that might come up on the journey such as delays or damages. Also they are often tasked with using technology to track the location of goods.
Is logistics in high demand?
According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, employment for logistics professionals is expected to grow by 18%, which is much faster than many occupations. Each year, there are more than 20,000 job openings in the industry that need to be filled due to people retiring or moving on to different industries. Due to the increasing demand of eCommerce, aspiring logisticians have more career options than ever.
Starting on a logistics career path
A career in logistics normally starts with bachelor's degree or a professional certification in the field, followed by an internship or full-time role. Formal education is often supplemented with experience and professional certifications, and certificates. Some of those certifications can help you get your foot in the door. Despite, most logistics, supply chain and transportation positions requiring a degree there are some jobs where less education is not a problem.
Getting Started Overview:
- Bachelor's Degree and/or Certification
- Internship
- Entry-level position
Logistics career education requirements
Following are some of the bachelor’s degrees that logistics professionals often obtain. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but provides a basic understanding of the potential majors to pursue:
- Operations management
- Logistics and supply chain management
- Industrial engineering
- Business analytics
- Economics
- Information systems management
- Business administration
- Logistics management
As with all careers, further education can lead to opportunity, especially if when pursuing more supervisory roles or highly technical positions in engineering or analytics. Common logistics masters degrees include:
- Logistics and supply chain management
- Supply chain and logistics technology
- Applied business analytics
- Global operations and information
Logistics Career Salary Averages
The annual salary for logistics positions varies by job type and location. The salary range for logistics managers in the United States is $70,625-$130,000, with the average salary around $86,500. Logistics managers with one of ASCM's APICS certifications — such as the ASCM CLTD designation — earn an extra $12,500 annually on average. The median salary for APICS certified logistics managers is $99,000. Professionals in Canada who hold a CLTD designation earn 16% more than their peers without the designation.
Logistics career skills
Professionals pursuing a career in logistics should have or be prepared to acquire a variety of skills:
- Attention to detail
- Communication
- Problem-solving
- Project management
- Analytical skills
- Customer service
- Technological proficiency
- Innovation
- Flexibility and adaptability
- Leadership and collaboration
- Risk management
What do logistics professionals do?
Because logistics covers such a wide area within supply chain management, there are many potential jobs to consider. The responsibilities within these roles cover a multitude of areas, as shown below, but primarily focus on ensuring products are safely transferred from point A to point B, while taking the necessary measures to avoid regulatory issues and increase transportation cost effectiveness.
- Order processing – A well-managed logistics ecosystem ensures orders are properly prepared, packaged, and delivered. The major functions of order processing include inventory picking, order placement, sorting, packing and shipping.
- Warehouse management – A role in warehouse management requires effectively auditing and tracking materials and goods, along with handling special requirements, such as docking and cold storage facilities.
- Inventory management – Maintaining sufficient inventory levels entails monitoring inventory records, predicting the demand for goods and ensuring safety, which all rely heavily on effectively managing a database.
- Transportation – The act of transporting goods involves running an automated fleet management system for route optimization, cost effectiveness and mitigation of any transportation risk.
- Packaging – Ensuring the proper logistics packaging protects your products from any kind of damage, deterioration or tampering.
- Demand forecasting – Proper demand forecasting requires maintaining appropriate product levels while managing unpredictable market conditions. Advanced analytics and powerful databases are key in this role.
- Customer response – A prompt response strategy leads to accuracy in order fulfillment and happy customers. Deploying and managing advanced software platforms can be a large part of this responsibility.
- Material handling – Handing materials efficiently ensures products reach the customers in optimal condition. This often involves implementing robust material handling systems to streamline delivery times and improve overall customer service.
- Fleet management – Fleet management includes monitoring, tracking and maintaining commercial vehicles to enhance driver safety and ensure prompt delivery.
- Information control – This involves the fundamental supply chain process of managing data-driven logistics operations. Technology drives the core of this function and is key to creating holistic supply chain management.
Logistics jobs
A logistics career may start with job titles like warehouse worker, logistics administrator, inventory analyst, buyer or purchaser, supply planner, demand planner, or production planner. Professionals progress to specialist and manager roles, director positions and ultimately executive roles. For example, a professional might start as a logistics manager for less-than-truckload, trucking, or rail; move to a distribution manager role; grow to director of distribution; advance to director of transportation; and ultimately reach the role of vice president of transportation. Another example career path broadens into more general supply chain management jobs: It starts at logistics coordinator or master scheduler, then progresses to senior logistics manager or supply chain manager, director of supply chain, vice president of supply chain, or chief supply chain officer.
Entry-level logistics job titles
With so many options in the logistics industry, it can be difficult to know which roles you should searching on job boards. These roles serve as the perfect entry point for your logistics career:
- Customer support systems analyst
- Data entry specialist
- Data analyst
- Distribution or warehousing worker
- Documentation specialist
- Governmental procedures expert
- Inventory control specialist or inventory manager
- Logistics analyst
- Logistics coordinator
- Logistics engineer
- Logistics manager
- Master planner
- Purchasing manager
- Quality control specialist
- Shipping coordinator
- Transportation analyst
- Transportation manager
- Warehouse manager
Logistics senior-level job titles
A career in logistics offers plenty of room to grow, too. After an entry-level and a managerial role, professionals can advance to higher-level positions:
- Chief supply chain officer
- Director of distribution
- Director of logistics
- Director of transportation
- Vice president of operations
- Vice president of transportation
Regardless of the specific logistics career path chosen, industry professionals will most likely find fulfilling, stable supply chain careers. On a 1-10 scale, 65% of surveyed supply chain professionals ranked their job satisfaction at an 8or higher, and 96% said they planned to stay in the field for at least the next five years.
Logistics Career Resources
If you're looking to learn more about your options in logistics and supply chain management career path check out our resources:
- Look for a logistics job role: Supply Chain Job Board
- Join the largest community of supply chain professionals: ASCM Membership
- Learn more about career development opportuntiy: Certified in Logistics, Transportation and Distribution (CLTD) or the Supply Chain Warehousing Certification
